THE GAME: Stanford hosts Cal Poly on Sunday, Nov. 9 at 1 p.m. Kevin Danna and Joaquin Wallace have the call on ACCNX, while Tim Swartz will handle the radio broadcast on GoStanford.com, the Stanford Athletics app and Learfield’s Varsity Network.
THE RUNDOWN: Stanford is 2-0 for the fourth consecutive season ... The Cardinal is near the top of the ACC in returning production, welcoming back 54.2 percent of its scoring, 49.7 percent of its rebounding, and 57.4 percent of its assists ... Stanford has the fewest transfers on its roster among all 68 Power 4 programs (1) ... In addition to its returning core, the team added the nation’s No. 3 recruiting class according to espnW HoopGurlz ... Kate Paye’s first signing class as head coach includes three five-star talents (Hailee Swain, Lara Somfai, Alexandra Eschmeyer) and two four-stars (Nora Ezike, Carly Amborn), and four ranked in the HoopGurlz top 100 ... Stanford’s three five-star signees tied for the national lead with Tennessee and LSU ... Its three McDonald’s All Americans (Swain, Somfai, Eschmeyer) were almost as many as the rest of the ACC combined (4) ... Somfai is the only Power 4 conference freshman averaging a double-double ... The Cardinal has three freshmen averaging double figures scoring, which is tied for the second most in the nation behind Hawai’i (4) ... Nunu Agara is on watch lists for the Naismith Trophy and Katrina McClain Award (PF), Kennedy Umeh is on the Lisa Leslie Award (C) watch list, and Lara Somfai and Hailee Swain are on the USBA Tamika Catchings Award watch list (freshman player of the year).
VS. CAL POLY: Stanford is 11-1 all-time against Cal Poly and has won all 10 games played in Maples Pavilion. The teams met six times from 1977-80 under former Stanford head coach Dotty McCrea, with the Cardinal posting a 5-1 mark, but then didn’t play again until an 86-51 Cardinal win on Nov. 15, 2013. The Mustangs’ only win in the series came in San Luis Obispo on Feb. 14, 1978, 66-60. In the most recent meeting on Nov. 25, 2024, Brooke Demetre tied a then-career high with 17 points in an 81-45 win.
BUILT ON DEFENSE »
- Stanford’s defense had gotten off to a good start this season, holding its two opponents to an average of 50.0 points on 29.7 percent shooting.
- In the season opener against UNC Greensboro, the Cardinal limited the Spartans to just 42 points on 25.9 percent shooting (15-of-58), numbers better than any game last season.
- The point total was the fewest allowed by the Cardinal since a 98-38 win over Morgan State on Dec. 31, 2023 and UNCG’s field goal percentage was the lowest for a Stanford opponent since UAlbany shot 25.0 percent (14-of-56) on Nov. 26, 2023.
- Last season, Stanford was 261st nationally in field goal percentage defense (.421) and 286th in scoring defense (69.3).
- Prior to last season and in available NCAA records dating to 2001-02, the Cardinal had never finished outside the top 50 in field goal percentage defense and had been outside the top 100 in scoring defense just twice.
- Those 23 seasons (2001-02 through 2023-24) included 12 years of a top-10 field goal percentage defense and two top-10 scoring defenses.
RETURNING PRODUCTION »
- Stanford is near the top of the ACC in returning production, welcoming back 54.2 percent of its scoring (1,221 of 2,255 points), 49.7 percent of its rebounding (583 of 1,172 rebounds), 57.4 percent of its assists (251 of 437 assists) and 56.9 percent of its minutes played (3,585 of 6,300 minutes) from a season ago.
- The Cardinal is third in the ACC in returning points (Duke - 67.7%, Virginia 61.6%, Virginia Tech 54.7%), second in returning rebounds (Duke - 64.1%), third in returning assists (Virginia - 70.7%, Virginia Tech - 68.5%, Duke - 63.0%), and third in returning minutes (Duke - 68.1%, Virginia Tech - 57.6%).
CARDINAL CONTINUITY »
- The Cardinal only has one transfer on its roster in junior Mary Ashley Stevenson, who is in her second year on The Farm after playing one season at Purdue.
- Stanford has the fewest transfers on its roster among all 68 Power 4 programs. NC State, Washington and Oklahoma each have two.
- Among Power 4 schools, Stanford and Washington tied for the least amount of portal movement this offseason (total number of transfers in + transfers out). The Cardinal had two outgoing transfers in senior Tess Heal (Kansas State) and graduate student Jzaniya Harriel (SMU). The Huskies, which had zero outgoing transfers, welcomed two incoming transfers in Avery Howell (USC) and Yulia Grabovskaia (Michigan).
AS GOOD AS ADVERTISED »
- Stanford’s freshmen have been as good as advertised to start the season. Lara Somfai (14.5 ppg), Hailee Swain (12.5 ppg) and Alexandra Eschmeyer (12.0 ppg) are the team’s three leading scorers and have accounted for 78 of their team’s 166 points this season (47.0 percent).
- In Thursday’s win over Santa Clara, Somfai had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Eschmeyer went for 11 points, 12 boards and a game-high four blocks. In available records dating to 2002-03, it was the first time Stanford had two freshmen with double-doubles in the same game.
- The only other Cardinal freshmen to match Eschmeyer’s line over that same span were Cameron Brink at Washington State on Jan. 27, 2021 (12 points, 14 rebounds, five blocks) and Kaylee Johnson against Washington on Feb. 2, 2015 (11 points, 17 rebounds, four blocks).
- Stanford is the first to have multiple freshmen with double-doubles in a game since Campbell’s Ciara Alexander (12 pts, 14 rebs) and Jasmine Felton (16 pts, 12 rebs) on March 15, 2025 against College of Charleston, the first major conference team since Colorado’s Grace Oliver (16 pts, 14 rebs) and Erin Powell (11 pts, 11 rebs) against Houston on Feb. 15, 2025, and the first ACC team since Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron (13 pts, 12 rebs) and Olivia Miles (17 pts, 10 rebs) on Jan. 28, 2022 against Syracuse.
- Lara Somfai is averaging 14.5 points and 10.5 rebounds through two games, one of only six freshmen in the nation averaging and double-double and the only one from a Power 4 conference.
- The Cardinal has three freshmen averaging double figures scoring, tied for second in the nation with Austin Peay (Jim’Miyah Branton, Mckenzie Neal, Jade Rucker). Hawai’i leads the country with four freshmen averaging at least 10 points (Teyahna Bond, Bailey Flavell, Danijela Kujovic, Kyra Webb).
- Players 6-feet-5 and taller have made four total three pointers this season and Stanford’s 6-foot-5 freshman Alexandra Eschmeyer has two of those (2-of-3). Kentucky’s 6-foot-5 Clara Strack has made one (1-of-4) and NC State’s 6-foot-6 Tilda Trygger has made the other (1-of-3).
UPPERCLASSMEN LEAD THE WAY »
- The Cardinal has three upperclassmen averaging double figures alongside its freshmen in Chloe Clardy (12.0 ppg), Nunu Agara (11.5 ppg) and Talana Lepolo (10.0 ppg).
- Agara narrowly missed a double-double in the win over Santa Clara with 13 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
- Lepolo, who missed all but five games last season due to injury, led all scorers with 16 points against the Broncos and was 4-of-6 from behind the arc. Her 16 points were her most since scoring a career-high 20 at California on Dec. 29, 2023.
- Among Power 4 conference players that have played multiple games, Chloe Clardy is one of five averaging 12.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals along with Florida’s Liv McGill (32.0 ppg, 9.5 apg, 6.0 spg), Penn State’s Kiyomi McMiller (22.0 ppg, 7.0 apg, 4.5 spg), Tennessee’s Talaysia Cooper (20.5 ppg, 3.5 apg, 3.0 spg) and LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson (14.5 ppg, 4.5 apg, 2.5 spg). Clardy is the only one to do it coming off the bench.
FIRST CLASS »
- In addition to Stanford’s returning core, the team added the nation’s No. 3 recruiting class according to espnW HoopGurlz.
- Kate Paye’s first signing class as head coach includes three five-star talents (Hailee Swain, Lara Somfai, Alexandra Eschmeyer) and two four-stars (Nora Ezike, Carly Amborn) according to espnW HoopGurlz, and four ranked in that publication’s top 100.
| Player | HoopGurlz Rank | Stars | Ht./Pos. |
| Hailee Swain | 8 | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 5-11 • G |
| Lara Somfai | 12 | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 6-4 • F |
| Alexandra Eschmeyer | 21 | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 6-5 • F |
| Nora Ezike | 85 | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 6-2 • F |
| Carly Amborn | -- | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 6-2 • G/F |
- Stanford’s three five-star signees tied for the national lead with Tennessee and LSU and the program’s most since it had four in the Class of 2019 (Haley Jones, Ashten Prechtel, Fran Belibi, Hannah Jump.
- Of the 24 women selected to be McDonald’s All Americans, Stanford (Eschmeyer, Somfai, Swain) and Tennessee had the most players suiting up next fall with three commits each. Stanford’s three McDonald’s All Americans were almost as many as the rest of the ACC combined (4).
PRESEASON ACC PROGNOSTICATIONS »
- The Cardinal was picked to finish sixth in the ACC in a vote of the league’s 18 head coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel, totaling 1,041 points from 70 voters behind Duke, NC State, North Carolina, Louisville, and Notre Dame.
- An All-ACC second team selection last season, Nunu Agara was voted to the 10-person Preseason All-ACC Team. She was Stanford’s leading scorer (15.8 ppg) and rebounder (7.6 rpg) a season ago and is the ACC’s third-leading returning scorer (Hannah Hidalgo – Notre Dame; Kymora Johnson - Virginia) and its second-leading returning rebounder (Jessica Peterson - Miami).
- Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai landed on the six-person Preseason All-Freshman Team and Stanford was the only school with multiple players on the list. Both five-star talents, Swain was rated as the No. 8 player in the country in the Class of 2025 according to HoopGurlz and Somfai was ranked 12th. The pair were McDonald’s All-Americans, Jordan Brand Classic All-Americans and appeared at the Nike Hoop Summit – Swain for USA Basketball and Somfai on the World Roster.
WATCH LISTS »
- Nunu Agara is one of 50 players under consideration for the 2026 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year and one of 20 on the watch list for the 2026 Katrina McClain Award, which recognizes the top power forward in women’s college basketball.
- She scored in double figures in 21 games last season, had six 20-point efforts and tied for eighth in the ACC with nine double-doubles.
- Agara increased her scoring average by 10.4 points and her rebounding average by 4.7 boards over her freshman year and was one of seven major conference underclassmen to average 15.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.
- She had 29 points and 13 rebounds in an overtime loss at No. 5 LSU on Dec. 5 and shot 75.0 percent from the floor (12-of-16), becoming the fifth DI player since 2002-03 to have 29 points and 13 rebounds in a true road game against an AP top five opponent and the only one to do it on better than 60.0 percent shooting.
- Kennedy Umeh is on the watch list for the 2026 Lisa Leslie Award, which recognizes the top center in women’s college basketball.
- Umeh appeared in 21 games as a freshman last season, averaging 3.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. She collected her first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in just 11 minutes against Morgan State on Nov. 22, becoming just the seventh power conference player with a double-double in 11 minutes or less since 2002-03.
- Lara Somfai and Hailee Swain are both on the preseason watch list for the USBWA Tamika Catchings Award, which recognizes the national freshman player of the year.
SAMUELSON RETURNS TO STANFORD »
- Karlie Samuelson, a 2017 honorable mention All-American who led the Cardinal to two Final Fours, has returned to her alma mater as an intern for the 2025-26 season.
- Back with the program while she rehabs from a left foot injury sustained in June, Samuelson has played for six franchises across seven WNBA seasons since her graduation from Stanford with a degree in human biology in in 2017. Over 121 career games, the 6-0 guard has averaged 5.3 points and 2.0 rebounds while shooting 41.1 percent from the field and 39.2 from deep.
- Samuelson is the fifth Stanford alumna and WNBA veteran on staff this season, joining four Cardinal coaches in Kate Paye, Katy Steding, Erica McCall and Jeanette Pohlen.
- Samuelson averaged career highs in points (12.4), rebounds (3.4) and assists (2.7) and personal bests in field goal percentage (.482) and 3-point field goal percentage (.485) in leading the Cardinal to the 2017 Final Four as a senior. She finished second in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage, a mark good for second in school single-season history and fifth in Pac-12 history.
- Her 96 made 3-pointers in 2016-17 are tied with Jeanette Pohlen for second in Stanford history, tied for eighth in Pac-12 history, and her 249 career 3-pointers are fifth in the school record books. A career 44.3 percent 3-point shooter, Samuelson is second at Stanford to Jennifer Azzi, fifth in Pac-12 history and 21st in NCAA history. She ended her playing time at Stanford with the best career 3-point percentage for any Pac-12 player since 1990.
ALUMNI SUPPORT PROGRAM AHEAD OF SEASON »
- Stanford women’s basketball received a generous gift from longtime program supporters Celia Oakley, MS ‘85, PhD ‘91, and her husband, Craig Barratt, MS ‘87, PhD ‘92, the two endowing an assistant coaching position to bolster the program’s ability to recruit, develop, and retain top coaching talent.
- Erica McCall is the inaugural holder of the Celia Oakley and Craig Barratt Women’s Basketball Assistant Coachship.
- Oakley and Barratt are among the program’s most dedicated supporters. Oakley earned her undergraduate degree at Cal and her master’s and PhD in engineering at Stanford. She’s a fan of both institutions, and especially Cardinal basketball. A lifelong sports fan and athlete, she served on the Stanford Athletics Board until 2021 and currently serves on the Stanford Women’s Basketball Board of Advisors.
- Oakley spent the last decade developing electric personal aerial vehicles at Pivotal Aero, most recently as the Chief Information Officer. She helped guide the company through product development to human flight. Prior to joining Pivotal, Oakley was a member of the Stanford Racing Team, which created Stanley, the world’s first successful self-driving car, which won the DARPA Grand Challenge.
- Barratt also earned his master’s and PhD in engineering at Stanford and serves as a director at several technology companies, in addition to being an advisor of the Stanford Center for Digital Health.
- Five of Stanford’s six coaching positions are endowed.
AP TOP 25 »
- Stanford is outside the preseason AP Top 25 for the second consecutive year, the first time that’s happened since 1985-86 and 1986-87.
- The Cardinal appeared on three ballots in this year’s preseason rankings, all at No. 25 - Alex Simon (SF Gate), Kelly Gramlich (ACC Network), Reed Darcey (The Advocate).
- Stanford has not been ranked since Nov. 11, 2024, a stretch of 20 consecutive polls that is the program’s longest stretch since it made its debut in the rankings on Nov. 23, 1987.
- When Stanford was ranked last season on Nov. 11, Kate Paye became the 16th person to both play on and be a head coach for an AP-ranked team at the same school (H/T Mel Greenberg).
- The other 15, in alphabetical order: Adia Barnes (Arizona), Amanda Butler (Florida), Pokey Chatman (LSU), Cynthia Cooper-Dyke (USC), Kellie Harper (Tennessee), Michelle Clark-Heard (Western Kentucky), Niele Ivey (Notre Dame), Carolyn Kieger (Marquette), Linda Lappe (Colorado), Wendy Larry (Old Dominion), Cheryl Miller (USC), Carol Ross (Ole Miss), Bev Smith (Oregon), Holly Warlick (Tennessee) and Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota).
- Since appearing in its first rankings on Nov. 23, 1987, Stanford has appeared in the preseason Top 25 each season except three (1999-00; 2024-25; 2025-26).
- The Cardinal is the second-most ranked team of all-time and has appeared in 646 of 886 all-time AP polls over 50 seasons (Tennessee - 795).
SUPERB STAFF »
- Stanford boasts a roster of coaches that features four WNBA veterans, more than any other program in the country, in Kate Paye, Katy Steding, Erica McCall and Jeanette Pohlen. All four are Stanford graduates.
- Paye played 79 games for Minnesota and Seattle from 2000-02, Steding 55 games for Sacramento and Seattle in 2000 and 2001, Pohlen 148 games for Indiana from 2011-2017, and McCall 122 games for Indiana, Atlanta, Minnesota and Washington from 2017-21.
SEASON OF CHANGE »
- After making 36 consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 1988-2024, Stanford was not an at-large selection to the field in 2024-25 and appeared in the WBIT for the first time.
- Stanford was 49th in the NET rankings ahead of Selection Sunday, the fourth-highest rated program to not make the NCAA Tournament (No. 39 Minnesota, No. 46 Virginia Tech; No. 48 UNLV).
- The Cardinal was 50th in the final NET rankings after the completion of the NCAA Tournament.
- With a 16-15 overall record, Stanford posted a winning record for the 38th consecutive season, the fifth-longest active streak in the country.
- The Cardinal’s 16 wins were its fewest since 1986-87 (14) and its 8-10 conference mark was its first sub-.500 league record since the same year (8-10).
- Stanford played in a different league for the first time since Tara VanDerveer’s first Cardinal squad played in the Pac-West in 1985-86.